Our pet care team all has experience in the animal care field through their own animals, shelter and rescue work, internships, 4H, and veterinary offices. We specialize in special needs animals who need daily medications - Sub Q fluids and insulin injections are common during our daily visits. Everyone is experienced in cat and dog behavior so your rambunctious kitty or overly enthusiastic dog is never an issue!
Kelsey Herrera
Hi, my name is Kelsey Herrera and I graduated in 2011 from UC Davis with a Bachelors Degree in Animal Science and a Specialization in Behavior. During my career at UC Davis, I made sure to take advantage of all the great opportunities and internships that were offered in the animal care and veterinary field. Although I found medicine interesting, I enjoyed animal behavior so much that I interned in the animal behavior department for 3 years developing experiments and studying animal behavior.
On the weekends I would volunteer in all the nearby clinics that shelters and rescues would organize. This included the fix our ferals clinics in both Fairfield and Oakland where I would monitor surgeries, vaccinate, deworm, and apply medication to feral (sleeping!) kitties. I would also volunteer at the Mercer clinic in Sacramento where we would provide food, bedding, and veterinary care to homeless animals.
The last year of my college career and post-graduation, I worked in a Sacramento Veterinary Hospital where I worked on my skills in animal care and behavior, medication and fluid administration, and recognizing and diagnosing common ailments seen in our companion animals. On off days from the clinic I would work as a sitter for a professional petsitting company in Davis, CA. I enjoyed working with the pet-sitting company so much I decided that this was the type of work I would like to become involved with full time. I truly enjoy being able to care for an animal in their home environment where they are comfortable and provide them with the care they need while their loved ones are away. I found this type of work so rewarding that I have decided to embark on my own career in home pet care.
On the weekends I would volunteer in all the nearby clinics that shelters and rescues would organize. This included the fix our ferals clinics in both Fairfield and Oakland where I would monitor surgeries, vaccinate, deworm, and apply medication to feral (sleeping!) kitties. I would also volunteer at the Mercer clinic in Sacramento where we would provide food, bedding, and veterinary care to homeless animals.
The last year of my college career and post-graduation, I worked in a Sacramento Veterinary Hospital where I worked on my skills in animal care and behavior, medication and fluid administration, and recognizing and diagnosing common ailments seen in our companion animals. On off days from the clinic I would work as a sitter for a professional petsitting company in Davis, CA. I enjoyed working with the pet-sitting company so much I decided that this was the type of work I would like to become involved with full time. I truly enjoy being able to care for an animal in their home environment where they are comfortable and provide them with the care they need while their loved ones are away. I found this type of work so rewarding that I have decided to embark on my own career in home pet care.
Side note: Kelsey is the owner and primary caregiver of the group. Kelsey is the one who communicates with clients before and after trips, sets up meet and greets, handles all invoicing and business concerns, etc. Outside of Kelsey, the rest of the team is solely responsible for providing one on one, in home care to your furry companion. Before hiring, everyone is extensively background checked, reference checked, and even DMV record checked. Upon hiring everyone is trained by Kelsey for a few weeks so they can become familiar with our company policies and meet many of our furry, feathery, and finned clients! Everyone also becomes CPR certified if they are not already. Our team is always in full communication with one another transferring updates and concerns and everyone has a written record and care instructions on everyone's critter/s (slowly going digital!). Since everyone works under the KCC company name, each staff member is bonded and insured. The KCC team shares care shifts with one another so no one works a 6 AM - 10 PM day (our approximate care hours).
Brian Herrera
Business partner to Kelsey and ball/Frisbee thrower extraordinaire, Brian is the professional dog wrestler, and cat cuddler of the group. He often visits the pups who need just a little extra retrieval/wrestling time or kitties who need to be cuddled and carried around their home! His pets are the same as Kelsey's - goofy little Ariea, herding extraordinaire Ian, and a sassy Calico named Sydney. Jocelyn Canty
Jocelyn is a recent UC Davis graduate, having majored in Animal Science with an emphasis in Physiology. Originally from the Bay Area, she began implementing her love for animals into impactful work by volunteering at the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley and working at a local pet store that emphasized the importance of animal nutrition and care. She has had a myriad of experience working with all kinds of animals including domestic pets, exotic species (reptiles, birds, and small animals), and even livestock. Jocelyn has a certification from Foothill College as a Veterinary Assistant, and has extensive clinical experience interning at organizations including Nine Lives in Redwood City, MERCER Clinic in Sacramento, UC Davis VMTH Emergency Services, UC Davis VMTH Small Animal Surgery, and the UC Davis VMTH Rehabilitation Clinic. She also has been involved in research at UC Davis which has given her experience working with swine, diary/meat cattle, goats, sheep, and even poultry. At home, Jocelyn cares for her chinchilla duo, Ricky and Lucy; her albino leopard gecko, Sherbert; and the house cat, Penelope.
Jayden Westbrook
Jayden is the newest member of the KCC team and is enjoying getting to know all of the wonderful clients in our care. Originally from Las Vegas, Jayden is currently an undergrad animal science major at UCD. Over the years she has spent her free time volunteering at animal facilities and gaining experience with all sorts of different species. She started out by volunteering to walk dogs and socialize kitties at the local shelter in Vegas, and since then has volunteered at V’s Animal Sanctuary (a farm animal sanctuary in Vegas), the Mercer Veterinary Clinic, the Las Vegas Veterinary Speciality Center, the Wildlife Care Association, the UCD Equestrian Center, and the California Raptor Center. Her own personal pets have included just about everything you can think of! Mice, rats, gerbils, ferrets, geckos, frogs, fish, hermit crabs, tarantulas, praying mantises, a snake, and of course furry kitties and puppers. Her current animals are Pip, an orange tabby and PJ, a young red-tailed hawk. She also has a lovely German Shepherd but unfortunately he is still in Vegas so she is currently enjoying all the pup love from our sweet KCC clients :-).
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Rachelle Gagnon
Rachelle has been an animal person ever since she could pronounce the word “dog”. She has always been surrounded by animals and lived in a house full of fur (and feathered) babies. She was always the curious child who would spend her early mornings watching any and all Animal Planet shows. She started volunteering at a local equestrian center for senior horses in high school and fell in love with large animals. She grew up as the go to pet sitter for her friends and family and has cared for a variety of pets, ranging from bunnies to snakes. She is currently an active volunteer with the Yolo County Animals Services Shelter and helps care for the shelter’s dogs and cats, and even helps run offsite adoption events. She also volunteers as a foster during kitten season and helps hand raise orphan kittens. Being a possible pre-veterinary student, she has taken advantage of the great opportunities in Davis, gaining clinical experience through internships at both the shelter and the Teaching Hospital on campus. Rachelle has also worked as an intern at the UC Davis goat barn, helping bottle-raise dairy kids. She falls in love with any animal she cares for and is committed to the care of animals of every shape and size. Her wide experience caring for fur babies has equipped her with the patience and compassion that animals require when their parents leave them in KCC's care. Her companion animals include a German Shepherd/Husky mix, Sydney; a Spaniel/Corgi mix, Niall; three spoiled kitties, Rella, Cody, and Tigerlily; and a chatty cockatiel, Knocker; all whom live in her hometown.
Melissa Santogrossi
Melissa joined the KCC team in the summer of 2019 and her animal experience and love for animals has been a fabulous addition to our team of pet care lovers. She began fostering adult dogs as well as puppies through the Yolo county SPCA in October of 2018 which sparked her interest in dog behavior and training. A year later she began working for a professional dog trainer in Davis, CA, (Dog Kind) where she could further learn about dog behavior and became knowledgeable in how to work with fearful and timid pooches. Melissa has brought that knowledge of dog behavior and training to KCC where she enjoys meeting and working with all of the pups in our care. Besides working at the shelter and with a dog trainer, Melissa has personal experience with many other types of animals, having owned and cared for dogs, cats, birds, fish, and even reptiles since her childhood. She currently is the proud fur mom of 3 pups - a German Shepherd, Chihuahua mix, and a young Pomeranian mix.
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So now that you have seen our great team, you may still be wondering, what would be the benefit of hiring a pet care company with super star employees versus an individual sitter?
- Availability: A professional pet sitting business with employees will have greater availability and has a greater ability to accommodate last minute requests of already established clients.
- Back Up Plan: A pet sitter with employees has a backup plan if there is an emergency. If a personal emergency arises, another employee (who is trained by the company and has access to the specific routine of your pet and can call the office with questions) is able to fill in. There is no such thing as OUR pet care team cancelling on YOU!
- Liability Insurance: If your pet sitter has employees they will be covered under the pet sitters liability and bonding insurance which PROTECTS YOU if your pet is injured or if something is damaged in your home.
- Another set of “eyes and ears.” A second pet sitter visiting your home and pets may notice something the other pet sitter may not have. Pet siting employees communicate and work together to provide the optimal care for your pets.
- Experience: Each pet sitter brings a different set of experience & credentials; they can contact each other as well as pet sitting management/owner if they have a problem or question.
- Management: Pet Sitting employees allow the pet sitting business owner to manage the business. A pet sitter with employees has more time to answer and return emails, provide service for last minute requests & be on standby for assisting or back up to any of their employed pet sitters.
- Peace of Mind: When you hire a professional pet sitter with employees you have the peace of mind to enjoy your vacation or focus on your workday knowing that ALL bases are covered.
